Types and Forms of Humour

Types and Forms of Humour

1. Slapstick: This style of humour involves physicality. This means someone is using exaggerated or wild body movements. Usually, there are gags, pranksand practical jokes involved but it always has to do with the body, or comedy around the body behaving oddly. Oftentimes people are getting hurt, maybe they slip and fall, maybe something is falling on them.

2. Self-deprecating: When someone is a master of (or really good at) self-deprecating humour it means they are good at putting themselves down or making fun of themselves on purpose to amuse others. Self-deprecating humour makes people feel comfortable because the person seems real and humble and able to make themselves vulnerable enough to laugh at themselves.

3. Wordplay humour orPuns: This type involves twisting language around with humorous results. Sometimes called “Dad jokes” (appropriate for kids). Examples:

- Past, present, and future walked into a bar... It was tense.

- Why are fish so smart? Because they live in schools!

- Which is faster, hot or cold? Hot, because you can catch a cold.

4. Dark/Gallows/Morbid humour: Grim jokes dealing with misfortune and/or death and with a pessimistic outlook. This is the type of humour most likely to offend others and so it is best tested on your friends who love you unconditionally. Example:

- Why don’t cannibals eat clowns? - Because they taste funny.

5. Deadpan/Dry humour: Delivered with an impassive, expressionless, matter-of-fact presentation.

6. Irony & Sarcasm: Verbal irony is a figure of speech that communicates the opposite of what is said, while sarcasm is a form of irony that is directed at a person, with the intent to criticise.

A very common example of irony: when something bad happens, one might say:

- Oh, that's just great!

Here is a more sophisticated example of irony:

There are only 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't.

An example of situational irony: A parking enforcement officer gets a parking ticket.

Sarcasmis always verbal, intended to make fun of somebody:

Person A: "I'm going to join the gym this year!" Person B: "Great idea! That worked out so well last year!"

7. Highbrow: Humour pertaining to cultured, sophisticated themes.

8. Surreal or absurd humour: This is the kind of humour one can spot in the story “Alice in Wonderland”. It takes the world and flips it upside down. The result is so odd and strange that it ends up being funny – for some!

Sometimes called: weird, odd, offbeat, strange, quirky

Humour Conversation Questions

What do you think about slapstick humour? Is it funny when someone falls over? When is it okay to laugh at another person, and when is it wrong?
Laughter is the best medicine. What do you think about this idea?
How do you feel about clowns? Scary or funny?
Is stand-up comedy popular in your culture? Who is your favourite stand-up comedian?
Is being funny a natural ability or can a person learn to be funny? How could a person become funnier?
What is your favourite comedy movie? Can you recall a funny scene from the film?
Who is the funniest actor or actress in the world? Would you see a movie just because that person is in it?
Do you follow any comic strips or humorous comic books? Explain what they are about and why you like them.
Do you enjoy dark humour? Why do you think people sometimes want to joke about topics like death?
Describe the difference(s) between these different kinds of laughter: a) chuckle; b) giggle; c) cackle; d) sneer; e) roar; f) snort. In what situations would you laugh like that?
Do the things you laugh at change as you grow older, or remain broadly the same?
Does parody have a place in your culture? Who or what is usually the target of parody?
How do you feel about toilet humour?
How do you react if someone tells a bad joke? Do you laugh to be polite?